Are you the financer of the holidays? Are you the one left paying all the bills long after the turkey, wrapping paper and tinsel are put away?

The best way to hold onto reason during the holiday season is to ignore the hype and to simplify. In order to do this, you need to make a plan. Create a holiday budget and set limits on the amount you plan to spend. Be sure to include all the holiday expenses you may not automatically think about -- decorations, holiday cards, postage, gift wrap, baking ingredients, etc.

Analyze your past holiday expenditures and try to estimate how much you'll spend this year. Consider eliminating unnecessary expenditures. The goal of taking a holiday inventory is not to make you feel your should sacrifice tradition, but to help you prioritize what's most important to you.

Want to know more? Follow our four-part series and attend a seminar at CCCS on November 6. Call 888-511-2227, ext. 145, to register.